OMAHA, Neb. — Nathan Adrian, a Bremerton High School graduate and 2008 Olympian, advanced one step closer to a second berth in London on Saturday night at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials.

Adrian tied with Josh Schneider for the second-fastest time in the 50-meter freestyle semifinals with a time of 21.81 seconds. The pair finished behind 31-year-old Anthony Ervin.

"I'm happy with that," said Adrian, who earned a gold medal in 2008 swimming in the prelims for the American 400-meter free-relay team. "Nothing spectacular, but I think we've got some left in the tank."

Later in the night, Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte had their most stirring duel of the trials so far in the 200-meter individual medley.

The two were never more than inches apart, but Phelps led at every turn, and he really turned it on at the end to edge Lochte with a time of 1 minute, 54.84 seconds — nine-hundredths ahead of the runner-up and the fastest time in the world this year.

"It feels good to be back on that side, but I'm sure that's not going to be the end of us going back and forth," Phelps said. "I'm just happy to be able to have a good race like that, kind of fold it all together."

For Phelps, it was an emphatic message on his 27th birthday that he intends to turn his last Olympics into another major medal haul. For Lochte, it was a gutsy performance coming just a half-hour after he won the grueling 200 backstroke.

In other events on the sixth night of the trials, Jessica Hardy made up for the disappointment of missing out on the Beijing Games because of a failed drug test, winning the 100 freestyle. Seventeen-year-old Missy Franklin moved a step closer to having a seven-event program in London, finishing second behind Hardy in 54.15, while 11-time Olympic medalist Natalie Coughlin missed out on her last realistic chance at an individual Olympic race.

"That was all my heart in that race right there," said Hardy, who won in 53.96.

Coughlin finished sixth, the last spot that can earn a possible berth on the 400 freestyle relay. But, at best, she would probably only get a morning swim at these games, a far cry from the six medals she won in China.

Rebecca Soni locked up a second individual race in London, cruising to an easy win in the 200 breaststroke with the fastest time in the world this year, 2:21:13.